4 Steps To Take After Hiring A Domestic Violence Lawyer

4 Steps To Take After Hiring A Domestic Violence Lawyer



When you've been falsely charged with abuse or a domestic disturbance of some kind or other, you need to hire a domestic violence lawyer to help you. You need to find someone local with plenty of experience with the judges and the prosecution in your area. Find someone that you feel comfortable talking to about your situation, why someone would lie about you, who the witnesses against you may be and their credibility, and other things that can help build your strategy. From there, here are 4 steps that you should expect to take to work towards getting your charges dismissed:

1. Gather Evidence

You need to start gathering evidence to prove your innocence as soon as possible, even before you've hired an attorney. If you're spending time in prison, contact someone to help you. You need to get your hands on the evidence before it gets tampered with or misplaced. If there was a verbal altercation, you should hunt down witnesses. If the party accusing you was intoxicated, you can use credit card statements, cab fare receipts, witnesses, video surveillance, or drunken texts to prove that the person's testimony isn't credible. Take pictures of the alleged injuries for your own evidence, too.

2. Seek an Affidavit of Nonprosecution

More often than not, the person making the false accusations will feel remorse and want to have the charges dropped. The only way to do this is to have this person sign an affidavit of nonprosecution. Although you can use this as evidence to have your charges dropped, this doesn't always mean that the charges will be dropped since the state is the one bringing the charges against you. Keep the affidavit to use in court to help prove your innocence.

3. Request a Dismissal

Your attorney will talk with the prosecution during your hearings or before your court appearances. He or she will provide a good reason for the case to get dismissed. This reason should not be the best reason, and your attorney should be careful not to lay all of your cards on the table. The prosecutors don't need to offer any deals or dismiss the case, and the information could end up being used against you to build a solid case that will put you behind bars for a long time. As long as you hire an experienced attorney, he or she should know how to negotiate effectively for you.

4. Prepare for Trial

Your attorney will be working to file the motions and subpoenas that are relevant to the case, preserve your rights, and gather the evidence from the prosecution. He or she will work with you to prepare you to testify in court. You should prepare by dressing in business attire, such as a suit and tie or business suit or dress. Remove any piercings that you have, and cover your tattoos with clothing or makeup. When you look professional in court every time you have to appear, you'll find that you have a greater chance of having your case dismissed or getting the jury to lean in your favor.

A domestic violence lawyer is vital to help you work through your charges and prepare for court to help get your charges dropped as quickly as possible. If you end up getting convicted, you can have serious ramifications to deal with in your personal life, making it difficult to get certain jobs or moving into certain apartments. Work with your attorney to make sure that you're probably prepared to deal with the charges, negotiate with the prosecution, and ensure that you have the positive results that you are hoping to get.